Thermal studies of CRUCIFORMS® checkerwork solutions to optimize the energy efficiency of regenerative furnaces

Date
March 11th, 2025
Success stories
Description

Each regenerator being specific, to help you chose the best checkerwork, SEFPRO provides thermal studies that estimate the energy efficiency of different technical solutions to optimize the fuel savings provided by your regenerator within specific technical and financial constraints, including CAPEX or OPEX considerations. 

Title

Gathering furnace and regenerator parameters

Description

Like any other manufacturing process, a good understanding of your furnace and regenerator operating conditions is key to determining the best checkerwork to meet your expectations in terms of lifetime, maintenance, energy savings and CO2 emissions.

From a set of parameters defined by the glassmaker or the furnace engineering company (chamber dimensions, fuel consumption, temperatures of fumes entering the regenerator, cullet ratio, etc.), SEFPRO can carry out numerical simulations to predict regenerator efficiency with different CRUCIFORMS® checkerpacks and compare them to other regenerator technologies.  

Also, at the design stage of new furnaces, these simulations can support the optimization of regenerator size to achieve the best trade-off between its CAPEX and the furnace OPEX. 

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Image bilan énergétique
Description
Schematics of heat fluxes in the regenerator of a glass making furnace.
© SEFPRO

Customized solutions to meet your needs

Every thermal study investigates several solutions to support your design selection in consideration of economic and technical constraints and goals. Decision-making criteria can involve, for instance, the reduction of maintenance costs by minimizing channel plugging risk or the maximization of energy efficiency by enhancing heat exchange capability.  

Our thermal study also provides you with an evaluation of all the critical parameters related to regenerator operation: furnace fuel consumption, velocities and temperatures of air and fumes along the checkerpack channels, heat exchange areas, weight of the checkerpacks, and finally the overall regenerator efficiency.  

Illustration of thermal study results for the regenerator of an end-fired glass making furnace
Illustration of thermal study results for the regenerator of an end-fired glass making furnace. © SEFPRO

Based on the numerical results obtained, for each potential solution gas and CO2 savings can be estimated over the years as well as the initial investment for the checkerpack supply. This valuable information supports the analysis of the financial and environmental aspects of regenerator design and construction, and facilitates data-driven decision making when selecting the products to be used. 

How accurate are the thermal study results?

REGEN, the code used in SEFPRO’s thermal studies, was developed in collaboration with renowned French research institutions and validated through extensive field tests at both pilot and industrial scales. Nowadays, several established engineering companies in the glass industry have recognized the value and accuracy of SEFPRO’s numerical model.

 

Sefpro
Clair loop regenerator pilot system developed in collaboration with CEA (Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique) © SEFPRO

Q&A

How can I request a thermal study?

Simply contact your SEFPRO’s sales representative who will send you a questionnaire listing all the necessary technical information needed to carry out a specialized thermal study of your regenerator. 

How much does a thermal study cost?

In most cases, this is a free of charge service that SEFPRO offers to its customers. 

Contact us for more information

Which industry does your request concern?
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Thank you for your answer. Since your inquiry is not related to Glass industry, we kindly invite you to contact Saint-Gobain Performance Ceramics & Refractories team

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